Method and Apparatus for Data Space Profiling of Applications Across a Network

• US 20080114806A1
• Filed: 11/13/2006
• Published: 05/15/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 11/13/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Oracle America, Inc. (Oracle Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Oracle America, Inc. (Oracle Corporation)
• Inventors: Kosche, Nicolai
• Granted Patent: US 8,627,335 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/104.1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3409 for performance assessment
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3495 for systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/86 Event-based monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/865 Monitoring of software
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/87 Monitoring of transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/88 Monitoring involving counting

Abstract

A system and method for profiling a network application may include means for operating on context-specific data and costs. The system may include an apparatus for associating local extended address elements with a message sent from a first computing system to a second computing system across a network. The second computing system may store the received information as remote extended address information and may store its own local extended address information. An event agent may capture values of local and/or remote extended address elements in response to detecting the message or another system event and may associate the extended address elements with the message or system event in an event set accessible by a data space profiler. The extended address information may include time stamps. An event agent may determine network latency dependent on time stamps of messages and may generate an event if the latency exceeds a predetermined threshold.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

a first computing system sending a message including one or more local extended address elements, each comprising an extended address element identifier and a value, from the first computing system to a second computing system;

the second computing system receiving the message including the one or more local extended address elements;

the second computing system detecting a system event;

the second computing system associating the one or more received local extended address elements with the detected event as remote extended address elements.

2. The method of claim 1,

wherein at least one of said one or more local extended address elements, said remote extended address elements, and said one or more other local extended address elements comprises one of:

a port identifier, a network protocol name or type, a connection identifier, an end point identifier, a frame number, and a network address; and

wherein at least one of said one or more local extended address elements, said remote extended address elements, and said one or more other local extended address elements comprises one of;

a time, a physical address of a memory component, a virtual address of a memory component, a physical address of a hardware component, a virtual address of a hardware component, a source-level data object language construct, a virtual address of a source-level data object language construct, a physical address of a source-level data object language construct, a program counter value, a virtual address of an instruction instance identifier, a physical address of an instruction instance identifier, a hardware thread identifier, a software thread identifier, a storage system software address, and a storage system hardware address.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising the second computing system associating one or more other local extended address elements with the detected event.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

storing said remote extended address elements and said one or more other local extended address elements associated with the system event in an event space database; and

a data space profiler accessing the event space database to identify a performance bottleneck of a system that experienced the detected event dependent on at least one of said remote extended address elements or said one or more local extended address elements associated with the system event.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein at least one of said remote extended address elements and at least one of said one or more other local extended address elements represents a time stamp;

further comprising;

synchronizing a time base of the first computing system and a time base of the second computing system; and

determining a network latency value dependent on a value of the at least one of said remote extended address elements representing a time stamp and a value of the at least one of said one or more other local extended address elements representing a time stamp;

wherein detecting the system event comprises the second computing system generating the system event dependent on the network latency value meeting pre-determined network latency event criteria.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the network latency value is an accumulated network latency value.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein detecting the system event comprises the second computing system generating the system event in response to receiving the message and dependent on information contained in the message.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein detecting the system event comprises the first computing system generating the system event in response to an action taken by the second computing system dependent on the message.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein detecting the system event comprises the second computing system generating the system event in response to an action taken by the second computing system dependent on the message.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the first computing system and the second computing system are software systems executing on a same hardware system.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the message comprises a software transaction between the first computing system and the second computing system.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

the first computing system storing values of said one or more local extended address elements in a local extended address element list when the transaction begins;

the first computing system storing different values of said one or more local extended address elements in the local extended address element list when the transaction ends;

the second computing system storing values of said remote extended address elements in a remote extended address element list when the transaction begins; and

the second computing system storing different the values of said remote extended address elements in the remote extended address element list when the transaction ends.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein detecting the system event comprises the second computing system generating the system event dependent on one of:

a transmission rate, a number of transmissions, a re-transmission rate, a number of re-transmissions, a transmission failure rate, a number of transmission failures, a collision rate, a number of collisions, a transmission retry rate, a number of transmission retries, a transmission error rate, and a number of transmission errors.

14. A system comprising a first computing system coupled to a second computing system via a network;

wherein the first computing system comprises;

means for storing one or more local extended address elements each comprising an extended address element identifier and a value; and

means for sending a message including the one or more local extended address elements to a second computing system;

wherein the second computing system comprises;

means for receiving the message including the one or more local extended address elements;

means for storing the one or more received local extended address elements as remote extended address elements; and

means for storing one or more other local extended address elements.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the second computing system further comprises:

means for detecting a system event;

means for associating the remote extended address elements and the one or more other local extended address elements with the system event;

means for storing the remote extended address elements and the one or more other local extended address elements associated with the system event in an event space database; and

means for accessing the event space database to identify a performance bottleneck of a software application causing the system event dependent on at least one of the remote extended address elements or the one or more local extended address elements associated with the system event.

16. The system of claim 14,

wherein at least one of said remote extended address elements and at least one of said one or more other local extended address elements represents a time stamp;

wherein the first computing system further comprises;

means for synchronizing a time base of the first computing system with a time base of the second computing system;

wherein the second computing system further comprises;

means for synchronizing a time base of the second computing system with a time base of the first computing system;

means for determining a network latency value dependent on a value of the at least one of said remote extended address elements representing a time stamp and the at least one of said one or more other local extended address elements representing a time stamp; and

means for generating a system event dependent on said network latency value matching or exceeding a predetermined latency threshold value.

17. The system of claim 14,

wherein the message comprises a software transaction between the first computing system and the second computing system;

wherein the first computing system further comprises;

means for storing values of the one or more local extended address elements in a local extended address element list when the transaction begins; and

means for storing different values of the one or more local extended address elements in the local extended address element list when the transaction ends.

wherein the second computing system further comprises;

means for storing values of the remote extended address elements in a remote extended address element list when the transaction begins; and

means for storing different values of the remote extended address elements in the remote extended address element list when the transaction ends.

18. A computer-readable storage medium comprising program instructions computer-executable to implement:

a first computing system storing one or more local extended address elements each comprising an extended address element identifier and a value;

sending a message including the one or more local extended address elements from the first computing system to a second computing system;

the second computing system receiving the message including the one or more local extended address elements;

the second computing system storing the one or more received local extended address elements as remote extended address elements;

the second computing system storing one or more other local extended address elements.

19. The storage medium of claim 18, further comprising program instructions computer-executable to implement:

synchronizing a time base of the first computing system and a time base of the second computing system, wherein at least one of said remote extended address elements, and at least one of said one or more other local extended address elements comprises a representation of a time stamp; and

determining a network latency value dependent on a value of the at least one of said remote extended address elements representing a time stamp and a value of the at least one of said one or more other local extended address elements representing a time stamp.

20. The storage medium of claim 18, further comprising program instructions computer-executable to implement:

the second computing system detecting a system event;

the second computing system associating the remote extended address elements and the one or more other local extended address elements with the system event;

the second computing system storing the remote extended address elements and the one or more other local extended address elements associated with the system event in an event space database, wherein the event space database is usable by a data space profiler to identify a performance bottleneck of a software application causing the system event dependent on at least one of the remote extended address elements or one of the one or more other local extended address elements associated with the system event.